Simone Hammond
Simone Hammond was a contestant on Season 12 of Hell's Kitchen. She ranked in 18th place. Personality Simone claimed to be energetic, but in the kitchen, she was very quiet and lacked the confidence to work in a professional kitchen. She wanted all the attention, but did not get it, leading her to leave the competition by herself. Season 12 Episode 1 The twenty new chefs rode on a bus on route to Hell's Kitchen and during this time they had the opportunity to get to know each other. Upon arrival, they were greeted by Jean-Philippe who walked the chefs into Hell’s Kitchen, only to walk into a service already going on with the food receiving positive comments and Ramsay expressing that the chefs in the kitchen were doing a splendid job. That confused the chefs, and once the service ended, Ramsay approached them and welcomed them. Ramsay explained that he did a soft opening to showcase the chefs what his expectations were, and asked if they could perform a service like the one they saw. Everybody promised they would, and Ramsay revealed that the winner would become a Head Chef at one of his restaurants, but first, they had to survive Hell’s Kitchen in Los Angeles, a place he deemed the capital of entertainment. Shortly after, patrons of the restaurant began putting on a performance. Afterwards, Ramsay announced it was time for the Signature Dish Challenge. During the Signature Dish Challenge, Ramsay noticed that Simone has not fired her protein yet and told her to move her ass, while she compared him to a teddy bear, and that she would use that mentality for whenever he screamed. She was the first person from the red team to have her dish judged by Ramsay, and went up against Anton. She made a traditional pork chop dish, and while Ramsay praised the dish for being cooked very well, he felt it looked a bit clumsy and she lost that round to Anton. The red team eventually won the challenge 5-4, and they were rewarded with dinner at one of Ramsay’s Los Angeles restaurants. During dinner service, Simone was on the appetizer station with Sandra. She was not seen that night, but after multiple mistakes, the red team were kicked out of the kitchen. Both teams were named joint-losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. She was not nominated for elimination. Episode 2 The next day, at 4:33 AM, the chefs awoke to the sounds of dirt bikes revving in the dorms, and Sous Chef Andi told them to meet Ramsay outside. During the Basics Relay Challenge, Simone was paired up with Melanie, they were the third pair from the red team to compete, and their task was to shuck a dozen oysters. While they got their first attempt accepted, the red team eventually lost the challenge 4-5. They were punished by picking carrots at a local carrot farm, prep them for the following night’s service, and make both kitchen’s stock in addition. During dinner service, Simone was on the appetizer station with Nicole. While she hoped she would shine that night, she sent up a risotto with little butter and stock, and Ramsay ordered her to finish it instead of firing a new one. Then, she was shaking as she did not want to anger Ramsay again, but her refire came out bland with no richness, and Joy accused her of leaving the building. So, Ramsay ordered Nicole to cook the risottos instead as the latter blamed her for not having her head in the game, but when Nicole sent up a risotto with little lobster in it, Ramsay warned the two to either cook with energy or get out. After Beth served a raw lobster tail, a pissed Ramsay had no idea where to go as she and Nicole have given up. After Nicole served a risotto that had too much pepper to the point of decolorization, Ramsay made good on his threat earlier by kicking both her and the former out of the kitchen. Eventually, they were joined by the rest of the red team after they were kicked out. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate two each. During deliberation, Joy reminded her about the rejected risottos, but she pointed out that Ramsay called everybody’s names at one point. Simone was named the red team's second nominee for elimination, with Beth as the first, and they joined DeMarco and Gabriel from the blue team. During her plea, she claimed she was a fighter and took responsibility for her mistakes. She survived elimination. Episode 3 Back at the dorms, Simone went to bed as she was only there to prove herself to Ramsay, and wanted to show she was not a passive person. The next day, at 5:45 AM, the chefs were woken to the sound of pigs squealing and a farmer yelling very loud. During the Potato Challenge, Simone was not seen during part 1, and the red team lost 90-100. During part 2, she put her dish in the oven and started moving around the kitchen. Kashia took notice, felt that she was goofing off, and even accused her of not caring, while Melanie called her the weirdest person in the world. When the red team had to discuss who to put up for their top five, she felt her dish was amazing, but none of the women agreed with her as Sandra deemed the dish horrible. Despite feeling she was capable despite being in another world, her dish was not chosen for the top five. The red team eventually won the challenge 18-16, and they were rewarded with a day onboard an 80-foot sailboat in the Southern California coastline. During the reward, Jean-Philippe asked Simone if she would like to hoist the Hell’s Kitchen flag, but she declined, leading Joy to call her a Debbie Downer. During prep, Simone complained to Joy that she was feeling faint, and that she could not think straight. However, Kashia did not think she was a sick as she was trying to act, and was faking it before deeming it pathetic. As she left with the medic to eat something, Joy felt there was nothing wrong with her, and wanted her gone. Then, Sous Chef Andi checked on her, who claimed she had chills and dizziness, but Sandra knew that Rochelle was sick while she was giving up. When Ramsay asked where she was, the women told him she was with the medic, although Joy felt she was falsifying her condition. Despite that, a concerned Ramsay checked on her in the hallway as she felt very cold and claimed she was dehydrated. When Ramsay asked her if she could put an effort into supporting her team win service, she said she hoped so, but hoped her team realized she was not feeling well instead of goofing off. However, her reappearance gave her a halfhearted applause from Sandra and Beth, and the latter feared what would happen as she was giving her the crazy eyes. When Ramsay assigned her to fish alongside Jessica, it made the latter nervous, especially when she had no idea how to properly cook fish on their station. During dinner service, Simone was on the fish station with Jessica. She sent up two lobster tails, but Ramsay informed her that one was raw, and she did not pay attention until Joy told her to. When Ramsay asked her why she entered the competition, she felt it would be a great opportunity while Joy asked where the her push and drive was before wanting her to go home. Then, Ramsay barged into her and Jessica’s work to see scallops overcooked and raw in the same pans. When Ramsay asked her for something, she did not respond, and Jessica blamed her for making her look bad. Later, she and Jessica sent up their refires, but the salmon came out raw and Ramsay sarcastically congratulated the two for being the worst two cooks to grace the fish station. However, she laughed at that comment, and a fed-up Ramsay kicked her and Jessica out of the kitchen. Eventually, they were joined by the rest of the women as they were kicked out. Both teams were named joint losers, and they were asked to nominate three each. During deliberation, Sandra named her as her nomination, which the rest of the women agree with. Simone was named the red team's first nominee, with Rochelle as their second, and Sandra as their third. She was called down to the front alongside Mike and DeMarco from the blue team, was ordered to hand over her jacket, and Ramsay gave her ten seconds each to plead her case. During her plea, she said she came to compete and wanted a chance to grow and learn from Ramsay. Before Ramsay could announce who was going home, she spoke up and said she wanted to leave. While that announcement shocked everybody, Ramsay granted her request, and allowed her to leave. During her exit interview, she claimed she was an energetic person, but was deemed a quiet person. Ramsay's comment: "Hell's Kitchen is about making someone's wish come true, Simone wished to leave Hell's Kitchen, that is an easy one, wish granted." Nomination history Trivia *She is the third contestant to voluntarily withdraw from the competition at elimination, following Ji (Season 5), and Joseph (Season 6). She is also the first who did after being nominated. *After her appearance on the show, she returned to being a chef at Gustav International Catering. Quotes *"I think my dish is amazing!" *"It's okay Chef, I can go." *(After being eliminated) "I'm normally really energetic and lively since have been feeling well I think I've come across as very soft and not someone who can fight and even the biggest most wonderful things sometimes don't turn out to be the best for you." Category:Chef Category:Season 12 Category:Nevadans Category:Quitters Category:18th Place